Correct me in public

Hi Everyone,

Just as you can see, I'll try to make some corrections for anyone who really wants to be corrected, or whenever I see the "correction tag", which means you don't mind others correcting you in public/openly.

English is such a tricky language, so it's inevitable for you (a learner of English) to make some mistakes in your writing. In fact, we all make mistakes - even a native English teacher. But we learn from our mistakes.

The problem is that we may have failed to spot the mistakes in our writing, or we may have been totally unaware of them. If someone else can help point out or correct our mistakes, then we will learn from the mistakes we made. I'd appreciate it if someone helps me to correct the mistakes in my blogs - I don't need to pretend I'm so good at English. I know I'll make mistakes whenever I write since I'm just a learner of English. We're here to learn English, anyway - it's not a matter of saving face. I don't mind you correcting me in public whenever you find mistakes in my writing. So, don't try to save my face - just correct me in public!

I do mind, however, if you're trying to humiliate me instead of helping correct me!

Do you think it's a good idea to turn a blind eye to the mistakes in someone's blogs, especially when you see the "correction tag"? It takes a lot of time and effort to make corrections, but it's worth it - to teach is the best way to learn.

English tip: you can say "someone helps someone else (to) do something" or "someone helps (to) do something" -- the "to" is optional.

Thanks for this great topic.... I agree with you Doc.

Everyone makes mistakes and we should try not to be "thin skinned" if mistakes are pointed out to us. It is time consuming to make corrections and I notice that many of us more advanced members limit the number of corrections we make, since some blogs would take a long time to try to get perfect.

I don't always make corrections because my time window to see blogs is often very small. I might have to make the choice between reading 6 blogs and encouraging 6 members, or reading one and making some corrections. Because I have limited time and usually read these from an iPhone, I opt to see more and make comments. Advanced members who help with corrections understand that it usually takes longer to make several corrections than it would to rewrite the entire blog correctly.

I want to thank everyone who makes corrections for others. It is a way of showing love and caring for our other members, even when they don't appreciate the effort that you made. I hope members know that you all should be appreciated.

I actually think it would be better if people who don't want to be corrected would say NO CORRECTIONS, so we could assume that everyone else is OK with being corrected. I find small mistakes when I check my own work. If you see a few notices that say Mr Bob commented on your page but only find one comment, it is because I saw a mistake and deleted the comment after I made a correct one. There may be mistakes in this comment because I am using the mobile again :)

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Comments

Expector Smith December 3, 2014 22:59

@Kimberly

Thank you for the comment. Yes, we should correct them with respect or politely since no one will be glad to know they've made mistakes.

@Komala

Yes, you should be able to spot the mistakes if you're trying to correct them. If you are not so sure if they are mistakes or not, you don't need to try to correct them.

It's also true that we are here to help each other learn English.
Expector Smith November 30, 2014 22:29

@Dana

Thank you for commenting on this blog. You really have a point there. Yes, it's true some of the corrections may not be correct. On the other hand, the members who were corrected might think the right corrections are incorrect. That can be a problem. If you're not sure whether the corrections are correct or not, you should ask whoever you think may give you a right answer to help you.

Thanks again.
Expector Smith November 30, 2014 14:21

@Madusha

Thanks for your comment. I can understand you very well even though there are a few mistakes in your comment. With more practice, your English will improve. Try to write a blog and have others to help point out or correct the mistakes you made. Good luck!
Expector Smith November 30, 2014 8:18

@Robbie

Thanks for the comment. Yes, it can be so frustrating if you helped correct them but they failed to respond. These things happen, though. I agree that sometimes it is the sense of fulfillment that makes us feel it's worth it. Keep up your great work here.

@english

Yes, you can say that again - making mistakes is part of the learning. I assume you mean the expression of "good at". If you're good at something, you're skilful at doing it. So, you can say "I'm good at speaking English." or "I'm good at English."

@kamelia

Thank you for the comment. Yes, I agree with you that we should correct them nicely or gently - don't make them feel embarrassed. It may be more preferable to correct them in private, but if we correct them in public, other members who read the corrections will benefit, too.
Robbie November 29, 2014 11:53

What an interesting topic, Doc! 'm glad that you took the time to write this one. It's a bit odd that some members ask for corrections on their blog, yet they didn't even bother to respond when someone corrects their mistakes. However, I find fulfillment whenever I correct a blog because it's part of my learning as well. Cheers!
Expector Smith November 29, 2014 7:27

Hi Mr.Bob,

Thank you so much for the nice comment. I'm pleased that you agree with me. I understand some members may feel so embarrassed when they know there are so many mistakes in their blog, but the mistakes wouldn't go themselves if no one else helps point out or correct them, which means the members who made all the mistakes will fail to learn from their mistakes.

If a member or a mistake is corrected in public, other members who read the corrections may benefit from them, too. That's why we suggest correcting in public.

I do reedit my comments when I find there are mistakes in them - I don't want other members read my mistakes. Sometimes I fail to spot the mistakes I made in a comment, though.

Thanks again,

Expector
Mr. Bob November 29, 2014 4:27

Thanks for this great topic.... I agree with you Doc.

Everyone makes mistakes and we should try not to be "thin skinned" if mistakes are pointed out to us. It is time consuming to make corrections and I notice that many of us more advanced members limit the number of corrections we make, since some blogs would take a long time to try to get perfect.

I don't always make corrections because my time window to see blogs is often very small. I might have to make the choice between reading 6 blogs and encouraging 6 members, or reading one and making some corrections. Because I have limited time and usually read these from an iPhone, I opt to see more and make comments. Advanced members who help with corrections understand that it usually takes longer to make several corrections than it would to rewrite the entire blog correctly.

I want to thank everyone who makes corrections for others. It is a way of showing love and caring for our other members, even when they don't appreciate the effort that you made. I hope members know that you all should be appreciated.

I actually think it would be better if people who don't want to be corrected would say NO CORRECTIONS, so we could assume that everyone else is OK with being corrected. I find small mistakes when I check my own work. If you see a few notices that say Mr Bob commented on your page but only find one comment, it is because I saw a mistake and deleted the comment after I made a correct one. There may be mistakes in this comment because I am using the mobile again :)
Expector Smith November 27, 2014 13:53

Hi Fizzy,

Thanks again for the comment. Yes, we should be careful - there are always untrustworthy guys.
Fizzy November 26, 2014 23:24

That's the right word Expector smith.. and here i am explaining with long sentence without even realised it there is suitable and short version of it hehehe "Imposter" i forgot about that word..

Thanks for helping out (^_^)d

Have a wonderful Thursday Expector Smith (^_^)/
Expector Smith November 24, 2014 13:15

@afro

You're welcome! Yes, some of our members will help point out the mistakes in your blog even though you forget to add the "correction tag" since they think you'll appreciate the correction.

I understand that nobody really wants to make makes and be corrected, so, if others didn't point out the mistakes, they would think they didn't make any mistakes and would feel happy. But it seems that it's inevitable for learners to make mistakes when they write.

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